How can a six-year old understand rejection? Today I wrote the story of Emmanuel in Congo. I'm hoping that someone reading his story will be moved to sponsor him for $30 a month.
Emmanuel's mother was a prostitute who had little time for him. Especially when she began to get sick. Emmanuel watched her waste away and die before he was four years old.
Still sick with grief, he was taken in by an uncle. But the family did not understand AIDS. They looked for a different cause for the mother's death. When they visited a traditional diviner, he was happy to provide an acceptable reason. It must be that little Emmanuel had "eaten" his mother's soul through witchcraft. He had only been with the uncle a short time when the whole family began to hate him. Blaming him for his mother's death and fearing he may do the same to them, no one could treat him decently, let alone show him love. Soon he was chased away from the home and ended up alone on the streets to fend for himself.
Emmanuel is now eight years old. He's finally had a break in life. He was found by one of the caring associates of Every Child Ministries, who arranged for care with a loving family. They need help, however. They are struggling to support their own family, and if Emmanuel proves to be the burden that breaks the fragile support system for their own, he may again find himself despised and cast out. Lord, please lay Emmanuel on the heart of someone who is able to sponsor him for $30 a month. Give strength to his foster family so that they may love and accept him as their very own. Provide for their needs and those of their whole family.
Your heart breaks for Emmanuel specifically and for all the Emmanuels of this world. Send them help in Jesus' name.
Monday, September 13, 2010
Sunday, September 12, 2010
How foolish I was -- The Days of Genesis 1
It’s so hard to clear our minds of preconceptions!
I admit I’ve been pretty critical of friends who, although they love the Lord, have accepted ideas about early earth history that seem to me to be incompatible with a serious, straight reading of the Biblical text. It’s seemed apparent to me that they think too much of the supposed “facts” of science, assuming the current thinking of the majority of scientists to be “proven fact”. And if an idea is regarded as proven fact, it’s obvious that when it conflicts with our understanding of Scripture, it must be our understanding of Scripture or the Scripture itself that is wrong. That’s been very easy to see—in others.
Recently I found, though, that the same kind of presuppositions had invaded my own thinking, too. I didn’t throw out the plain teaching of Scripture in favor of some other view, but I did have an area I could not understand. It always seemed problematic to me. That point was, since God measured the days of creation as morning and evening from Day 1, and since He did not create the sun, moon and stars until Day 4, how could days be measured as day and evening from Day 1? I didn’t think it in a way to reject or deny Scripture; I was just trying to figure it out. I hoped no one would ever ask me that question because I felt I didn’t have a very good answer.
I know, God made light and darkness on Day 1. I had read someplace that now scientists know that light can exist apart from the sun. But I have to admit, it was pretty hard for me to envision light without the sun, because the light I know is that which is related to the sun in one way or another.
I thought of measuring time on earth in terms of the movement of our solar system. Without the sun, it was hard for me to envision any measurement of time.
Then recently I read an article by a scientist who opened up my mind on this issue in one single statement. He pointed out that what measures days, light and dark, morning and evening, is not the revolution of the earth around the sun, but rather the rotation of the earth on its axis. Like duh! I knew that. Yes, of course, I knew that, yet my thinking about time was so connected to the solar system that I couldn’t see what that meant. Every time I envisioned measurement of time, I pulled up in my imagination my preconceived idea—the earth as a part of the solar system. I knew the difference between the earth’s revolution around the sun (one earth year) and its rotation on its axis (one earth day). But the two were so connected in my mind, that the idea of day and night without the sun still seemed problematic, or at least, difficult to imagine. Days in my mind were connected to months and years and those were connected to the solar system.
The scientist went on to discuss the idea of sidereal time. I wondered at first if he made up some esoteric word, but no, it’s described on Wikipedia in the same way he described it. Sidereal time is the kind of time commonly used in astronomy, used to adjust the clocks that move telescopes to keep certain objects in sight. Unlike solar time, sidereal time ignores the position of the sun. In order to keep heavenly bodies in view in their telescopes, astronomers have to put the sun out of the picture. Amazing! A mind-blowing concept!
I could only laugh at myself. How foolish I had been! While criticizing others, I had made the very same mistake. I had found it hard to understand the Scriptures simply because my own preconceptions had blocked my view.
Well, I don’t pretend to have it all right, even yet. I can only say, “Lord, open my mind. Let me not be blinded by my own preconceived ideas. Open me increasingly to the truth of Your Word.”
This is very important to me, because by my teaching and training I am not only influencing my own family, although that certainly is important enough! God has called me to teach and train leaders for the youth of the vast African continent. I have to get the Scriptures right. It scares me to realize how easily I was influenced by my preconceptions on this point. Lord, help me! Guide me by Your Spirit so that I can overlook my own preconceptions just as astronomers overlook the position of the sun when they set the timing of their telescopes.
I admit I’ve been pretty critical of friends who, although they love the Lord, have accepted ideas about early earth history that seem to me to be incompatible with a serious, straight reading of the Biblical text. It’s seemed apparent to me that they think too much of the supposed “facts” of science, assuming the current thinking of the majority of scientists to be “proven fact”. And if an idea is regarded as proven fact, it’s obvious that when it conflicts with our understanding of Scripture, it must be our understanding of Scripture or the Scripture itself that is wrong. That’s been very easy to see—in others.
Recently I found, though, that the same kind of presuppositions had invaded my own thinking, too. I didn’t throw out the plain teaching of Scripture in favor of some other view, but I did have an area I could not understand. It always seemed problematic to me. That point was, since God measured the days of creation as morning and evening from Day 1, and since He did not create the sun, moon and stars until Day 4, how could days be measured as day and evening from Day 1? I didn’t think it in a way to reject or deny Scripture; I was just trying to figure it out. I hoped no one would ever ask me that question because I felt I didn’t have a very good answer.
I know, God made light and darkness on Day 1. I had read someplace that now scientists know that light can exist apart from the sun. But I have to admit, it was pretty hard for me to envision light without the sun, because the light I know is that which is related to the sun in one way or another.
I thought of measuring time on earth in terms of the movement of our solar system. Without the sun, it was hard for me to envision any measurement of time.
Then recently I read an article by a scientist who opened up my mind on this issue in one single statement. He pointed out that what measures days, light and dark, morning and evening, is not the revolution of the earth around the sun, but rather the rotation of the earth on its axis. Like duh! I knew that. Yes, of course, I knew that, yet my thinking about time was so connected to the solar system that I couldn’t see what that meant. Every time I envisioned measurement of time, I pulled up in my imagination my preconceived idea—the earth as a part of the solar system. I knew the difference between the earth’s revolution around the sun (one earth year) and its rotation on its axis (one earth day). But the two were so connected in my mind, that the idea of day and night without the sun still seemed problematic, or at least, difficult to imagine. Days in my mind were connected to months and years and those were connected to the solar system.
The scientist went on to discuss the idea of sidereal time. I wondered at first if he made up some esoteric word, but no, it’s described on Wikipedia in the same way he described it. Sidereal time is the kind of time commonly used in astronomy, used to adjust the clocks that move telescopes to keep certain objects in sight. Unlike solar time, sidereal time ignores the position of the sun. In order to keep heavenly bodies in view in their telescopes, astronomers have to put the sun out of the picture. Amazing! A mind-blowing concept!
I could only laugh at myself. How foolish I had been! While criticizing others, I had made the very same mistake. I had found it hard to understand the Scriptures simply because my own preconceptions had blocked my view.
Well, I don’t pretend to have it all right, even yet. I can only say, “Lord, open my mind. Let me not be blinded by my own preconceived ideas. Open me increasingly to the truth of Your Word.”
This is very important to me, because by my teaching and training I am not only influencing my own family, although that certainly is important enough! God has called me to teach and train leaders for the youth of the vast African continent. I have to get the Scriptures right. It scares me to realize how easily I was influenced by my preconceptions on this point. Lord, help me! Guide me by Your Spirit so that I can overlook my own preconceptions just as astronomers overlook the position of the sun when they set the timing of their telescopes.
Saturday, September 11, 2010
I am sick and tired of prosperity teaching
I have to admit it. I am sick to my stomach and tired beyond description of the so-called Prosperity Teaching that has captured so much of the African church. I know, I know, I gave some lessons on "Prosperity Principles from Proverbs" myself a few years back, but my goal was to try to bring some Biblical balance to the topic, not to center minds and lives around getting rich as their main goal in life.
I have to admit it. Yes, I could be richer than I am. That will sound like heresy to many, I'm sure. They'll say I'm poor because my mindset is poor and I'm proclaiming myself into poverty and I refuse to be rich.
I could be richer than I am, I admit. You see, everyone has to choose what will be the priorities and goals of their life. If I chose to make being rich the goal and priority, the center of my life, then yes, of course, I could be richer than I am.
Would I want to do that? What would be the price?
The goal I have chosen is to be faithful to my Savior and to do all I can to show the love of Jesus in practical ways to as many African children as I can. (Sounds a little like the mission statement of Every Child Ministries. Hmmm.) Now God has entrusted to me, as He has to all of us, a limited measure of His infinite riches. (He knows I could not handle it all, and I'm thankful.) Every time He entrusts me with a dollar, or an hour of life, or with any other resource, He also gives me the choice of how to invest that resource. I could invest it all in myself. Then I'd surely be much richer than I am. Would I be happier? I don't think so.
I choose to invest my resources, after my own and my family's needs are met, in showing the love of Jesus to African children who have never known it.
Yesterday I wrote the story of an eight year old orphan boy in Congo. We'll use the story in his sponsorship packet, to try to get him a sponsor to help with schooling and other needs. Emmanuel was born to a prostitute, watched her die of AIDS before he was four, then was blamed for the death of his mother when his family visited a diviner who consulted the traditional gods and declared that the child had "eaten" his mother's soul through witchcraft. The family began to hate him and he was cast out on the street. Who will show him the love of Jesus? My brother Joseph began by finding emergency shelter for him. Oh, he lost resources in that transaction. Now Joseph will never be as rich as he could have been.
What good would it do me to be rich when I could rather invest my life in helping children like Emmanuel. I'm getting rich. all right. It's just a different kind of riches than the prosperity people talk about. It's the kind that is deeply satisfying, the kind that can never be taken from me.
Lord, would You let your people see that they could invest their lives in something so very much better than riches? Would you raise up a people who would invest their lives in the Emmanuel's of this world?
I have to admit it. Yes, I could be richer than I am. That will sound like heresy to many, I'm sure. They'll say I'm poor because my mindset is poor and I'm proclaiming myself into poverty and I refuse to be rich.
I could be richer than I am, I admit. You see, everyone has to choose what will be the priorities and goals of their life. If I chose to make being rich the goal and priority, the center of my life, then yes, of course, I could be richer than I am.
Would I want to do that? What would be the price?
The goal I have chosen is to be faithful to my Savior and to do all I can to show the love of Jesus in practical ways to as many African children as I can. (Sounds a little like the mission statement of Every Child Ministries. Hmmm.) Now God has entrusted to me, as He has to all of us, a limited measure of His infinite riches. (He knows I could not handle it all, and I'm thankful.) Every time He entrusts me with a dollar, or an hour of life, or with any other resource, He also gives me the choice of how to invest that resource. I could invest it all in myself. Then I'd surely be much richer than I am. Would I be happier? I don't think so.
I choose to invest my resources, after my own and my family's needs are met, in showing the love of Jesus to African children who have never known it.
Yesterday I wrote the story of an eight year old orphan boy in Congo. We'll use the story in his sponsorship packet, to try to get him a sponsor to help with schooling and other needs. Emmanuel was born to a prostitute, watched her die of AIDS before he was four, then was blamed for the death of his mother when his family visited a diviner who consulted the traditional gods and declared that the child had "eaten" his mother's soul through witchcraft. The family began to hate him and he was cast out on the street. Who will show him the love of Jesus? My brother Joseph began by finding emergency shelter for him. Oh, he lost resources in that transaction. Now Joseph will never be as rich as he could have been.
What good would it do me to be rich when I could rather invest my life in helping children like Emmanuel. I'm getting rich. all right. It's just a different kind of riches than the prosperity people talk about. It's the kind that is deeply satisfying, the kind that can never be taken from me.
Lord, would You let your people see that they could invest their lives in something so very much better than riches? Would you raise up a people who would invest their lives in the Emmanuel's of this world?
Sunday, June 6, 2010
Two things that bothered me about "The Shack"
When I was in Ghana last time I read the popular novel, "The Shack". Shortly before I left, my dentist had told me it was about meeting The Holy Trinity. Sounding intriguing. Soon I got caught up in a very compelling and heart-warming story. I had advance warning that God was portrayed as a woman, so that wasn't shocking, and I recognize besides authority qualities that we recognize as male, God also has nurturing qualities that we usually identify as being female. Through most of the book, the thing that bothered me most was the depiction of the Holy Spirit. It wasn't that He was an Asiatic female. It was the half unreal, fairy-like quality that disturbed me.
I also noticed that God was all kindness and love, and His authority and judgment were overlooked.
But the thing that bothered me at the most came at the end of the book. After the author had resolved the issue in such a heart-tugging way, came the shocker that what happened wasn't real--well, not totally real. Well, maybe partly real. Not real in an historical way that it really happened. The author encourages us to believe it was real in some other sort of way that is never really defined. Francis Schaeffer! Hold still in your grave! This bothered me a lot because it amounted, in my opinion, to a redefining of reality. It was as if something could be real and not real at the same time, true and not true equally together. Francis Schaeffer! Your bones are shaking!
This week I listened to other critiques of the book on Janet Parshall's radio show, "In the Market". Many problems were discussed, but to me the problem of reality is still the most troubling of them all. After you've redefined reality, you can redefine anything and everything else without impunity.
I also noticed that God was all kindness and love, and His authority and judgment were overlooked.
But the thing that bothered me at the most came at the end of the book. After the author had resolved the issue in such a heart-tugging way, came the shocker that what happened wasn't real--well, not totally real. Well, maybe partly real. Not real in an historical way that it really happened. The author encourages us to believe it was real in some other sort of way that is never really defined. Francis Schaeffer! Hold still in your grave! This bothered me a lot because it amounted, in my opinion, to a redefining of reality. It was as if something could be real and not real at the same time, true and not true equally together. Francis Schaeffer! Your bones are shaking!
This week I listened to other critiques of the book on Janet Parshall's radio show, "In the Market". Many problems were discussed, but to me the problem of reality is still the most troubling of them all. After you've redefined reality, you can redefine anything and everything else without impunity.
Friday, June 4, 2010
Fetal Heart "Tones"
What do you think of the You-Tube videos where an undercover woman TRIES to talk to a Planned Parenthood doctor before an abortion? She asks him if the fetus has a heartbeat. He squirms around and says there's no heartbeat, but there are heart TONES. Hmm. Always interesting to invent new uses for words, depending on the purpose for doing so. She asks when it becomes a heartBEAT. He says simply, "birth". So let me get this straight. In the womb the heart is pumping blood to oxygenate the body cells, but that's only heart TONES. After birth the heart does the same thing for the same purpose, but that's called heart BEAT. What deceptive use of words! Oh, the wicked deception of the human heart! Does it have no limit?
Trust Women
I've been seeing pleas for funds from NARAL (National Abortion Rights Action League) making the abortionist George Tiller into a hero because his motto was "Trust Women." Right off let me stop and say this, lest anybody misunderstand me: I don't condone murder and I don't condone the murder of George Tiller. The one who committed that act did a terrible thing. But--to make an abortionist into a hero is certainly a stretch in my book! His murder may have been a tragedy, but that does not make him a hero.
Now--about trusting women. The same group that is distributing wristbands in "honor" of Abortionist Tiller is the very same group that works against all attempts to make sure women have full information when they are considering their response to an unplanned pregnancy. NARAL does not want women to learn about fetal development, get ultrasounds or see pictures of their unborn children or even models showing development at each stage. They apparently don't trust women to make the "right" choice if they were presented with all the facts.
"Trust women" is just a nice-sounding myth, just pro-abortion rhetoric. If pro-abortion groups like NARAL and Planned Parenthood really trusted women, they'd trust them not only with the choice, but with all the information to make the choice. I suggest something better. "Trust God and Trust His Holy Word", where He said, "Before I formed you in the womb I knew you.
Jer 1:5 (NKJV)" It is God who is forming us in our mother's wombs, and when we suck out or cut up or poison His handiwork, it is a great and sad loss for us and for the world. That's one more reason why I am pro-life.
Now--about trusting women. The same group that is distributing wristbands in "honor" of Abortionist Tiller is the very same group that works against all attempts to make sure women have full information when they are considering their response to an unplanned pregnancy. NARAL does not want women to learn about fetal development, get ultrasounds or see pictures of their unborn children or even models showing development at each stage. They apparently don't trust women to make the "right" choice if they were presented with all the facts.
"Trust women" is just a nice-sounding myth, just pro-abortion rhetoric. If pro-abortion groups like NARAL and Planned Parenthood really trusted women, they'd trust them not only with the choice, but with all the information to make the choice. I suggest something better. "Trust God and Trust His Holy Word", where He said, "Before I formed you in the womb I knew you.
Jer 1:5 (NKJV)" It is God who is forming us in our mother's wombs, and when we suck out or cut up or poison His handiwork, it is a great and sad loss for us and for the world. That's one more reason why I am pro-life.
Friday, April 30, 2010
Children's Pastors' Conference
Children's Pastors' Conference
Check out my article, "The thunder god falls before the cross!" in the online edition of the newsletter from the International Network of Children's Ministry.
Check out my article, "The thunder god falls before the cross!" in the online edition of the newsletter from the International Network of Children's Ministry.
Thursday, April 22, 2010
What will help the child trafficking problem at the bottom line?
One of the things I committed to do was to place on slavery map (http://www.slaverymap.org/) all the examples of human trafficking and modern-day slavery I could find fom Africa or about Africans. It seemed like a big commitment, but it's been very helpful because right away I began to see patterns--both geographically and in ways traffickers do things.
Recently I've been posting a group of cases in which kids from Togo were trafficked to Nigeria. Again I began noticing patterns. Most were recruited by a "waga", a member of the local community who recruits poor kids for trafficking, promising them good jobs far away for whatever purpose she knows rings most loudly in their hearts. Most got to Nigeria by a long, circuitous route, picking up other recruits all along the way. And most escaped at least once--some several times--only to be quickly re-enslaved. Many of them assumed that if they could meet someone who spoke their language they'd be safe. Not always true. Often not true.
I dreamed about it last night and woke up thinking about it this morning. Escaping only to be re-enslaved. The heartlessness of the traffickers and enslavers was wrenching. What will help hearts like that? I have been thinking about why I am so involved in fighting child trafficking. It's not just out of emotional sentiment or pity. It's because I truly believe every human being is created in the image of God (Genesis 1:26-27). From that basis, I see human life as worthy of respect and care. We go from that basis to Jesus' commands to love our neighbors as ourselves. That expression of our faith rests on the foundation of being created in God's image. Such a faith makes human trafficking, slavery and abuse of every kind unthinkable.
Can we fight trafficking and slavery adequately without that base? We can fight it to some degree, to be sure. I've met and read many modern-day abolitionists like myself who are fighting slavery. I can't say they don't care or they aren't trying to make a contribution. They surely are. But I think that the Christian base provides a stronger, more compelling reason for any humanitarian action. If someone truly believes God created human beings special and worthy of respect, he can hardly become a trafficker or a slaver or an abuser. I think about the Togolese children whose stories I am posting now on slaverymap. How different would their stories have been if on escaping, they had found Christians who truly believed they were worthy of respect? Lord, while I fight child trafficking and modern-day slavery, help me to maintain my balance. Help me to remember what really helps the most. Help me to give adequate attention to that.
Recently I've been posting a group of cases in which kids from Togo were trafficked to Nigeria. Again I began noticing patterns. Most were recruited by a "waga", a member of the local community who recruits poor kids for trafficking, promising them good jobs far away for whatever purpose she knows rings most loudly in their hearts. Most got to Nigeria by a long, circuitous route, picking up other recruits all along the way. And most escaped at least once--some several times--only to be quickly re-enslaved. Many of them assumed that if they could meet someone who spoke their language they'd be safe. Not always true. Often not true.
I dreamed about it last night and woke up thinking about it this morning. Escaping only to be re-enslaved. The heartlessness of the traffickers and enslavers was wrenching. What will help hearts like that? I have been thinking about why I am so involved in fighting child trafficking. It's not just out of emotional sentiment or pity. It's because I truly believe every human being is created in the image of God (Genesis 1:26-27). From that basis, I see human life as worthy of respect and care. We go from that basis to Jesus' commands to love our neighbors as ourselves. That expression of our faith rests on the foundation of being created in God's image. Such a faith makes human trafficking, slavery and abuse of every kind unthinkable.
Can we fight trafficking and slavery adequately without that base? We can fight it to some degree, to be sure. I've met and read many modern-day abolitionists like myself who are fighting slavery. I can't say they don't care or they aren't trying to make a contribution. They surely are. But I think that the Christian base provides a stronger, more compelling reason for any humanitarian action. If someone truly believes God created human beings special and worthy of respect, he can hardly become a trafficker or a slaver or an abuser. I think about the Togolese children whose stories I am posting now on slaverymap. How different would their stories have been if on escaping, they had found Christians who truly believed they were worthy of respect? Lord, while I fight child trafficking and modern-day slavery, help me to maintain my balance. Help me to remember what really helps the most. Help me to give adequate attention to that.
Thursday, April 15, 2010
Reflections on the power of teachers
When I graduated from Tri-State (now Trine) University in 1978, I was asked to write the poem for the inside cover page of the class yearbook. My poem was about the influence of what we believe on what we do. Unworthy philosophies don't stay philosophies but become the acts that make up history. Before Treblinka (a Nazi death camp), a people believed in the philosophy of national socialism (Naziism).
It came to me again today. In reading through my Google alerts (which I use to try to keep up on areas of vital interest), I read a blurb about Afrikania Mission. This is the group that most strongly opposes the liberation of shrine slaves. Their main argument is that shrine slavery is a part of their culture so no one should mess with it. There was a simple line in this article about Osofo Okomfo Damua, the founder of Afrikania. I knew he was a former Roman Catholic priest who apostasized from his faith and became what in Ghana is commonly called a "fetish priest." In America we are prone to call such a person a witch doctor. He became sold on the idea that the spirits behind the African idols, or the "lesser gods" as they are called in Ghana, were every bit as viable and as worthy of worship as Jesus Christ. He founded the Afrikania Mission and became an outspoken opponent of Christianity.
Today, I can truly say that if it were not for the opposition of the Afrikania Mission, all the shrine slaves in Ghana would have been freed long ago. Ghanaian law, public opinion, and common decency are all on the side of liberation. From my experience I would say that a very high percentage of the priests and shrine owners themselves actually favor liberation. It is only Afrikania's incessant cries of 'Don't mess with our culture!' that keep the shrine slaves in bondage.
I knew all this, and I knew that Damua was influenced toward his relativistic stand by his studies in the U.S. I saw from the article that he obtained a Ph.D. from Howard University. Ah, yes. I've read some of the convoluted thinking of some of their scholars. I'm sure some are fine, too. I read on Wikipedia that one of their faculty discovered blood plasma. I'm sure many do a fine job. But somebody there influenced Damua in a direction that has had extremely tragic consequences. It could have happened in many universities, wherever relativistic thought is extolled.
I love teaching myself, and I loved university, so I couldn't get this out of my mind. I pictured some professor extolling what seemed to him like just a philosophy. There is no ultimate truth, he might have said. Truth for you might not be truth for me--something like that. In fact, the many gods worshiped in Africa--the spirits behind those mounds of clay with little shells stuck in for eyes--they are really just as good as the Christian God. Whatever he said, it made such an impression on Damua that he left his Catholic faith and turned to ancient idols.
It was a tragedy for Damua's own soul, for Jesus said, "No one comes to the Father but through Me" (John 14:6b). It was a tragedy for a woman I visited with team members a couple of years ago in a Ghanaian village. We sat on benches and chatted while she wove baskets. She was glad for our visits, but she told us pointedly that it was too late for her. She belonged to Afrikania, she said, and she had already given herself to the devil. (Those were her own words.) We pleaded with her that it is never too late as long as she has breath. Jesus loves her and stands ready to forgive her and welcome her when she comes to Him. She refused.
It is a continuing tragedy for thousands of shrine slaves who are still bound (not physically, but spiritually, psychologically and socially) to their masters, forced to bow and chant to idols that many of them tell me they hate. It is a tragedy for future generations because most shrines practice "replacement." When those slaves die, or even if they escape, the shrine will seek another girl from that family. One priest put it this way: "Once a crime is committed, it must be continuously atoned for until the end of time." !!!!!!!!!!!!
I wonder who influenced Damua. Was it one professor? Was it literature he read? Was it the flavor of a whole department? I don't know. I may never know. Whoever and whatever it was bears a weight of responsibility that I can't even imagine. Because of that influence, Damua died in his sins without the Savior. Because of that influence, that lovely woman we talked with may also face God without a covering for her sin. Because of that influence, thousands upon thousands remain in slavery and pass that heritage on to their most unfortunate children.
I got to wondering about Howard University. I found out it was started shortly after the end of the American Civil War. The first goal was to train African American clergyman, although the idea quickly expanded to include an entire university. Wow. To think that something started for such a purpose could end up having such an influence.
It gets me thinking. What kind of an influence will my life have?
It came to me again today. In reading through my Google alerts (which I use to try to keep up on areas of vital interest), I read a blurb about Afrikania Mission. This is the group that most strongly opposes the liberation of shrine slaves. Their main argument is that shrine slavery is a part of their culture so no one should mess with it. There was a simple line in this article about Osofo Okomfo Damua, the founder of Afrikania. I knew he was a former Roman Catholic priest who apostasized from his faith and became what in Ghana is commonly called a "fetish priest." In America we are prone to call such a person a witch doctor. He became sold on the idea that the spirits behind the African idols, or the "lesser gods" as they are called in Ghana, were every bit as viable and as worthy of worship as Jesus Christ. He founded the Afrikania Mission and became an outspoken opponent of Christianity.
Today, I can truly say that if it were not for the opposition of the Afrikania Mission, all the shrine slaves in Ghana would have been freed long ago. Ghanaian law, public opinion, and common decency are all on the side of liberation. From my experience I would say that a very high percentage of the priests and shrine owners themselves actually favor liberation. It is only Afrikania's incessant cries of 'Don't mess with our culture!' that keep the shrine slaves in bondage.
I knew all this, and I knew that Damua was influenced toward his relativistic stand by his studies in the U.S. I saw from the article that he obtained a Ph.D. from Howard University. Ah, yes. I've read some of the convoluted thinking of some of their scholars. I'm sure some are fine, too. I read on Wikipedia that one of their faculty discovered blood plasma. I'm sure many do a fine job. But somebody there influenced Damua in a direction that has had extremely tragic consequences. It could have happened in many universities, wherever relativistic thought is extolled.
I love teaching myself, and I loved university, so I couldn't get this out of my mind. I pictured some professor extolling what seemed to him like just a philosophy. There is no ultimate truth, he might have said. Truth for you might not be truth for me--something like that. In fact, the many gods worshiped in Africa--the spirits behind those mounds of clay with little shells stuck in for eyes--they are really just as good as the Christian God. Whatever he said, it made such an impression on Damua that he left his Catholic faith and turned to ancient idols.
It was a tragedy for Damua's own soul, for Jesus said, "No one comes to the Father but through Me" (John 14:6b). It was a tragedy for a woman I visited with team members a couple of years ago in a Ghanaian village. We sat on benches and chatted while she wove baskets. She was glad for our visits, but she told us pointedly that it was too late for her. She belonged to Afrikania, she said, and she had already given herself to the devil. (Those were her own words.) We pleaded with her that it is never too late as long as she has breath. Jesus loves her and stands ready to forgive her and welcome her when she comes to Him. She refused.
It is a continuing tragedy for thousands of shrine slaves who are still bound (not physically, but spiritually, psychologically and socially) to their masters, forced to bow and chant to idols that many of them tell me they hate. It is a tragedy for future generations because most shrines practice "replacement." When those slaves die, or even if they escape, the shrine will seek another girl from that family. One priest put it this way: "Once a crime is committed, it must be continuously atoned for until the end of time." !!!!!!!!!!!!
I wonder who influenced Damua. Was it one professor? Was it literature he read? Was it the flavor of a whole department? I don't know. I may never know. Whoever and whatever it was bears a weight of responsibility that I can't even imagine. Because of that influence, Damua died in his sins without the Savior. Because of that influence, that lovely woman we talked with may also face God without a covering for her sin. Because of that influence, thousands upon thousands remain in slavery and pass that heritage on to their most unfortunate children.
I got to wondering about Howard University. I found out it was started shortly after the end of the American Civil War. The first goal was to train African American clergyman, although the idea quickly expanded to include an entire university. Wow. To think that something started for such a purpose could end up having such an influence.
It gets me thinking. What kind of an influence will my life have?
Wednesday, April 7, 2010
THIS IS THE REASON I CRY
I got a tear-jerking email this afternoon. I could barely keep my tears off the keyboard as I read it. Another mission organization working in southern Sudan has 300 kids they have rescued--former child soldiers, and they are overwhelmed. Could we give them a home? They have immediate contact with 1,000 on the streets of Juba. Some have been rescued agressively and others have escaped from the LRA.
At times like this I wish ECM was much bigger than it is. We, too, are so stretched. We're trying to do so much with so little. BUT HOW DO YOU SAY NO? HOW DO YOU TURN AWAY FROM SUCH A REQUEST? HOW DO I GET IT OUT OF MY MIND? OR DOES GOD EVEN WANT ME TO DO SO?
This kind of thing puts my heart in a visegrip. I can hardly think of anything else. Some things I can turn away from and say, "That's awful, but that's a responsibility God has given to someone else." I can't say any such thing in this case. This is the very exact kind of thing to which God has called me--us. It is very evident that my mind and heart are going to wrestle with this until God shows us a solution. Right now, my heart is breaking. Lord, help! What do You want us to do?
At times like this I wish ECM was much bigger than it is. We, too, are so stretched. We're trying to do so much with so little. BUT HOW DO YOU SAY NO? HOW DO YOU TURN AWAY FROM SUCH A REQUEST? HOW DO I GET IT OUT OF MY MIND? OR DOES GOD EVEN WANT ME TO DO SO?
This kind of thing puts my heart in a visegrip. I can hardly think of anything else. Some things I can turn away from and say, "That's awful, but that's a responsibility God has given to someone else." I can't say any such thing in this case. This is the very exact kind of thing to which God has called me--us. It is very evident that my mind and heart are going to wrestle with this until God shows us a solution. Right now, my heart is breaking. Lord, help! What do You want us to do?
Saturday, March 20, 2010
God is intimately involved
This morning I was getting ready to shower, cleaning out the hairs that always accumulate in the filter. I was thinking about how the Bible says that the very hairs of our head are all numbered by our Heavenly Father. (Matthew 10:30). Laughing, I said to myself, "He doesn't just count them once. He has to get a new count every time we shower." Suddenly I began to gain a new appreciation for God's intimate care over His creation. He isn't involved only in the big things--keeping the planets on their courses, etc. He is intimately and personally involved with His creatures, and with each of us.
How different this is from the idea so prevalent in African traditional religion that God is Creator all right, but He's far away, too busy or too disinterested to care much about our affairs. Priests of African traditional religion tell me that God appointed the lesser gods to take care of the affairs of the world and of our lives. Of course, God is very clear that He appointed only One Mediator between us and Him--our Lord Jesus Christ (I Timothy 2:5). I've always known He cares about us. But it struck me in a new way that day. I care about my daughter, but I don't count the hairs on her head. Even the hairs in the drain would keep me busy. God cares about us so much and He knows the details of our lives so intimately, that He keeps track of each hair. I am so glad that I serve a God who is intimately involved. Praise Him forever, and may every group of people in Africa come to know His great care for them.
How different this is from the idea so prevalent in African traditional religion that God is Creator all right, but He's far away, too busy or too disinterested to care much about our affairs. Priests of African traditional religion tell me that God appointed the lesser gods to take care of the affairs of the world and of our lives. Of course, God is very clear that He appointed only One Mediator between us and Him--our Lord Jesus Christ (I Timothy 2:5). I've always known He cares about us. But it struck me in a new way that day. I care about my daughter, but I don't count the hairs on her head. Even the hairs in the drain would keep me busy. God cares about us so much and He knows the details of our lives so intimately, that He keeps track of each hair. I am so glad that I serve a God who is intimately involved. Praise Him forever, and may every group of people in Africa come to know His great care for them.
ECM Gets Involved in Fighting Child Sacrifice, Ritual Abuse
When Resty, the coordinator of ECM’s Gayaza Sponsorship Project in Uganda visited her sister recently, she told me she had my training on child trafficking fresh on her mind. So when she learned that a village woman had just rescued a three year old child who was discarded in a sack, she was immediately interested. As she learned to do in her training, she began to ask more questions, to look deeper.
When she learned what had happened to the little girl, she knew she had to get involved. The baby had suffered horrific ritual abuse in a traditional shrine, including having her undeveloped canine teeth cut out of her jaw, undoubtedly for ritual purposes. Her head hung to one side and her neck looked rotten, signs that she had probably been tied up around the neck. Then she had nearly suffocated when stuffed alive into a bag and discarded. She was found nearly drowning in her own feces, and seemingly near death.
In God’s mercy, a kindly lady found the little girl and did everything possible to rescue her, cleaning her up and seeking medical treatment at a hospital in spite of that fact that the child seemed not to see, hear or make any sound, and that all her joints had stiffened, including her backbone. The foster mother named the child Hope Tereza, and cared for her valiantly in spite of the fact that she had two other children to care for, one of them also unable to speak, and that her tumbledown hut leaked badly.
As the police began to search for the parents, two men showed up threatening the foster mother. It turned out that these men had kidnapped the child eighteen months previously and had used her as a sacrifice for rituals in a traditional shrine. The police then were able to locate the parents, who had nearly exhausted all their resources, even selling their land in their search for their missing child. The police have advised the family to leave the child in foster care for the time being while the parents settle some family issues. The girl’s original name was Resty, the same as the ECM worker who has been helping her.
ECM is now helping the valiant family who rescued the child as well as to the child Resty herself. We’ll call her Resty Hope to combine the two names. We have given assistance from our Rescue Fund, but we now need additional help. If we pull together, we believe that this family should be the beginning of a new sponsorship program in the Masaka District. We are seeking sponsors not only for Resty Hope, but for the two other children of the foster family. We also need special funds to help meet Resty Hope’s special needs and to get the new Masaka program started. In addition, our staff are working with all stakeholders to develop informative skits for public use that will show parents how they can protect their children against the growing problem of child sacrifice in Uganda. Gifts will also be accepted for this program.
Resty Hope’s joints are becoming less stiff with therapeutic massage, she seems to be seeing and hearing, and she is now able to smile. It is believed that a cerebral palsy chair would help her.
I remember being impressed recently as I watched a video recently of Gianna, a young woman who suffers cerebral palsy induced by the late term saline abortion by which her mother sought to end her life. She was born alive but damaged by the saline, and has become a mighty advocate of life. (You can watch her at www.youtube.com/watch?v=kPFhCNOuQ. If you have difficulty, just go to youtube and type abortion survivor in the search box.)
Like Gianna, Resty Hope, may never again be normal (although we acknowledge God’s ability to heal). But even if she is never normal, God must have very special plans for her life. Who else could have sent a woman who had such a heart to help her, just when she was at the point of death?
Let’s all join together in praying for Resty Hope! Those who wish to help can designate their gifts for one of these projects when giving to Every Child Ministries at www.ecmafrica.org.
When she learned what had happened to the little girl, she knew she had to get involved. The baby had suffered horrific ritual abuse in a traditional shrine, including having her undeveloped canine teeth cut out of her jaw, undoubtedly for ritual purposes. Her head hung to one side and her neck looked rotten, signs that she had probably been tied up around the neck. Then she had nearly suffocated when stuffed alive into a bag and discarded. She was found nearly drowning in her own feces, and seemingly near death.
In God’s mercy, a kindly lady found the little girl and did everything possible to rescue her, cleaning her up and seeking medical treatment at a hospital in spite of that fact that the child seemed not to see, hear or make any sound, and that all her joints had stiffened, including her backbone. The foster mother named the child Hope Tereza, and cared for her valiantly in spite of the fact that she had two other children to care for, one of them also unable to speak, and that her tumbledown hut leaked badly.
As the police began to search for the parents, two men showed up threatening the foster mother. It turned out that these men had kidnapped the child eighteen months previously and had used her as a sacrifice for rituals in a traditional shrine. The police then were able to locate the parents, who had nearly exhausted all their resources, even selling their land in their search for their missing child. The police have advised the family to leave the child in foster care for the time being while the parents settle some family issues. The girl’s original name was Resty, the same as the ECM worker who has been helping her.
ECM is now helping the valiant family who rescued the child as well as to the child Resty herself. We’ll call her Resty Hope to combine the two names. We have given assistance from our Rescue Fund, but we now need additional help. If we pull together, we believe that this family should be the beginning of a new sponsorship program in the Masaka District. We are seeking sponsors not only for Resty Hope, but for the two other children of the foster family. We also need special funds to help meet Resty Hope’s special needs and to get the new Masaka program started. In addition, our staff are working with all stakeholders to develop informative skits for public use that will show parents how they can protect their children against the growing problem of child sacrifice in Uganda. Gifts will also be accepted for this program.
Resty Hope’s joints are becoming less stiff with therapeutic massage, she seems to be seeing and hearing, and she is now able to smile. It is believed that a cerebral palsy chair would help her.
I remember being impressed recently as I watched a video recently of Gianna, a young woman who suffers cerebral palsy induced by the late term saline abortion by which her mother sought to end her life. She was born alive but damaged by the saline, and has become a mighty advocate of life. (You can watch her at www.youtube.com/watch?v=kPFhCNOuQ. If you have difficulty, just go to youtube and type abortion survivor in the search box.)
Like Gianna, Resty Hope, may never again be normal (although we acknowledge God’s ability to heal). But even if she is never normal, God must have very special plans for her life. Who else could have sent a woman who had such a heart to help her, just when she was at the point of death?
Let’s all join together in praying for Resty Hope! Those who wish to help can designate their gifts for one of these projects when giving to Every Child Ministries at www.ecmafrica.org.
Monday, March 15, 2010
Counting the Cost
Our home church missions emphasis month is featuring the theme, Counting the Cost. I was reminded of it again yesterday when I read on another blog about the death of a young woman Peace Corps worker. She taught school in an African country. She got close to the girls and realized that they were being systematically sexually abused. After much consideration, she decided to report the matter to the proper authority--discreetly and anonymously. The day after her report, she was found murdered in her home.
As I read her sad story, I remembered how many times I have faced up to the fact that what I am doing could cost my life. I've thought about it long and hard and many times. I value my life and I enjoy living. I'm not afraid to die. I know that when I die, by God's grace I will be with Him, because I know that Jesus Christ paid my sin debt to God. But still, I've got eternity to enjoy heaven and not so long to enjoy this life, so I'm in no hurry to move on to the next life.
Every time I've thought about it, though, I have come up with the same conclusion. What I am doing is worth living for, and it is worth dying for. I remember one night in Congo when we were trapped in the war there. There was fighting all around us and it was not safe to leave the house where we were staying. One evening we heard that the soldiers were planning to raid our neighborhood that night. There was no way to get out. I really thought we might die that night. We gathered with our Congolese friends who were there and knelt together. We prayed committing our lives to the Lord. The tears flowed down my face, but there was an amazing peace in my heart. The soldiers never did raid the neighborhood. We learned later that the guard reported seeing angels over the gate that night.
But it could have been different. Many missionaries have been killed at their post of service. Am I better than they? No. I don't know why I survived the Congo war and others suffered so much. I only know I have counted the cost, and I am willing to pay whatever it is.
In fact, the very book that God used to confirm His missionary call to me many, many years ago was "Through Gates of Splendor," a book about the martyrdom of five American missionaries in the jungles of Ecuador. My reaction then, as now, was sober but peaceful. I will give my life for the children of Africa. One way or another.
As I read her sad story, I remembered how many times I have faced up to the fact that what I am doing could cost my life. I've thought about it long and hard and many times. I value my life and I enjoy living. I'm not afraid to die. I know that when I die, by God's grace I will be with Him, because I know that Jesus Christ paid my sin debt to God. But still, I've got eternity to enjoy heaven and not so long to enjoy this life, so I'm in no hurry to move on to the next life.
Every time I've thought about it, though, I have come up with the same conclusion. What I am doing is worth living for, and it is worth dying for. I remember one night in Congo when we were trapped in the war there. There was fighting all around us and it was not safe to leave the house where we were staying. One evening we heard that the soldiers were planning to raid our neighborhood that night. There was no way to get out. I really thought we might die that night. We gathered with our Congolese friends who were there and knelt together. We prayed committing our lives to the Lord. The tears flowed down my face, but there was an amazing peace in my heart. The soldiers never did raid the neighborhood. We learned later that the guard reported seeing angels over the gate that night.
But it could have been different. Many missionaries have been killed at their post of service. Am I better than they? No. I don't know why I survived the Congo war and others suffered so much. I only know I have counted the cost, and I am willing to pay whatever it is.
In fact, the very book that God used to confirm His missionary call to me many, many years ago was "Through Gates of Splendor," a book about the martyrdom of five American missionaries in the jungles of Ecuador. My reaction then, as now, was sober but peaceful. I will give my life for the children of Africa. One way or another.
Friday, February 26, 2010
Seven Reasons Jesus is Still Weeping
1. Jesus wept. It’s the shortest verse in the Bible. But there is reason to believe that Jesus may STILL be weeping, because precious children who are objects of His love are abused and subjected to inhuman cruelties every day all over the world, simply to enrich others.
2. Although the Scripture does not directly say that He is still weeping, if I understand the heart of Jesus and the heart of Scripture, I believe He is still weeping. He is weeping because His children are being deeply damaged by the sins of others. He longs to bring comfort and healing to them.
3. Because His children are put into situations where, because of what they have gone through, it is exceedingly difficult for them to receive His love, experience His salvation, understand His kindness.
4. Because He cares deeply about His hurting children. When you weep, it is because you care so much.
5. Because He is praying for us. The Scripture says that the Spirit prays for us with groaning that cannot be uttered. That’s the best description of heartbroken weeping I have ever read.
6. Because He created us for freedom, but we have made His children into slaves.
7. Because He created us to reign over the earth, but we have treated His children as a cheap thing, having no value except to serve us.
Yes, I believe Jesus still weeps over the children of the world, over my precious children in Africa. He weeps. He cares He feels their pain.
2. Although the Scripture does not directly say that He is still weeping, if I understand the heart of Jesus and the heart of Scripture, I believe He is still weeping. He is weeping because His children are being deeply damaged by the sins of others. He longs to bring comfort and healing to them.
3. Because His children are put into situations where, because of what they have gone through, it is exceedingly difficult for them to receive His love, experience His salvation, understand His kindness.
4. Because He cares deeply about His hurting children. When you weep, it is because you care so much.
5. Because He is praying for us. The Scripture says that the Spirit prays for us with groaning that cannot be uttered. That’s the best description of heartbroken weeping I have ever read.
6. Because He created us for freedom, but we have made His children into slaves.
7. Because He created us to reign over the earth, but we have treated His children as a cheap thing, having no value except to serve us.
Yes, I believe Jesus still weeps over the children of the world, over my precious children in Africa. He weeps. He cares He feels their pain.
Thursday, January 21, 2010
Warrior Princess
I just finished reading "Warrior Princess," the true story of AIDS activist Princess Kasune Zulu, who is HIV positive herself. It was wonderful to read about another chosen by God to bring help and healing to some of His suffering African children. I strongly identified with Princess because she feels that this is her destiny, what her life is all about. Hey, I know that feeling! That's precisely the way I feel about my work with My BIG African Family, the forgotten children of Africa. Thank you, Princess, for the encouragement and for reminding me that although I may be "intense", as my husband sometimes says, I am not totally crazy. In fact, I love knowing what my life is all about. Sharing Jesus with my precious African Jewels is definitely worth the investment of my life.
Thursday, January 14, 2010
Call to Prayer, Prayer Guide Offered
This month Every Child Ministries is having a special emphasis on prayer, spending some time each day praying for the requests of our partners as well as those of the work. Friends are encouraged to email us their prayer requests. We are also offering a prayer guide I developed called "Prayer for the Dark Places" in Africa. Of course, there are many spiritually dark places, but I have selected four to emphasize. We are hoping people will spend one week praying for each of them, and then continue to remember specific requests as God brings them to mind or lays them on their hearts. We know that it is only God who can bring the spiritual breakthroughs needed for these challenging areas. Lord, help me to be more diligent in prayer for my beloved African family.
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